Thank you very much. I've thought I was going crazy while reading "Economics" by Michael Parkin, Melanie Powell, Kent Matthew. The grammatical mistakes are everywhere which lead to wrong logical conclusions. I think I am better to e-mail to the publisher to complain about it.

Thank you very much. I've thought I was going crazy while reading "Economics" by Michael Parkin, Melanie Powell, Kent Matthew. The grammatical mistakes are everywhere which lead to wrong logical conclusions. I think I am better to e-mail to the publisher to complain about it.

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There is nothing wrong with the phrase "some people will substitute Pepsi for Coke". Semantically it means that instead of one thing, another is used/bought/whatever. Part of the problem of reading specialized texts is that the language used is so specialized in itself. Economics is notably complex.

If you have a problem with the writing, you might be better to contact the author.

The recipe stated that brandy should be used. Since she had none she substituted it for sherry.

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That is not consistent. I would say:
Since she had none she substituted sherry for it.
Well, to be honest I wouldn't say that at all, I would say:
Since she had none she used sherry instead,
... but for the purposes of this post I wrote the first version

Putting my neck on the block, I think perhaps LRV got a couple of words the wrong way round.

Substitute X for Y - means X replaces Y.

Using by or with along with substitute always causes me confusion, so I don't use either myself.

Ah well, economic jargon again: the opportunity cost of a decision is based on what must be given up (the next best alternative) as a result of the decision. Any decision that involves a choice between two or more options has an opportunity cost.

It is also possible (and perhaps preferable) to omit the prepositional phrase.
Instead of saying "You can substitute sherry for brandy.",
it is clearer if you say "If you don't have brandy, you can substitute sherry."

People occasionally get the "for" version wrong. I was just looking at a recipe at Slow-cooked Ox Cheeks in Wine Recipe - Great British Chefs, and it says:I know ox cheek isn't the easiest ingredient to get hold of, but it is worth trying, if you can. If not, feel free to substitute the meat for shin of beef or venison stewing steak.
This is incorrect. It is clear that they mean you can substitute shin of beef or venison stewing steak for ox cheek.